The Industrial Revolution, which began in Great Britain in the seventeenth century, brought great technological to the world, but it has also created many problems. One of the most serious of these problems is the fact that the temperature of the and the water in the oceans is rising at a much faster rate than it has in the past. This problem, known as "global warming" or "global climate change", is already having many serious effects, including the melting of in the polar regions, rising sea levels, and an increase in the number of hurricanes and cyclones. In coming decades, global warming is expected to seriously affect hundreds of millions of people through increased coastal flooding, reductions in supplies, shortages and increasing health problems. Climate scientists all around the world now accept showing that global warming is caused by human activity. One of the major causes is that releases "greenhouse gases" like carbon dioxide and into the atmosphere. The evidence for this includes the fact that since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, there has been a 40% increase in the concentration of dioxide in the atmosphere. This increase is mostly due to the burning of fossil fuels like and . Our modern industrial world depends on these fossil fuels for nearly 90% of our energy needs. They are used for in cars, ships and planes, and for electricity in power stations. These technologies will continue to be used, and global warming will continue to cause , until alternative technologies like solar, wind, and thermal replace them. Until then, one of the best things each of us can do is to use less and consume fewer products. Another very important thing we can do is to share our of the problem with the people we know. Unless we all do whatever we can to reduce the impact of global warming, it could become the most serious problem has ever faced.